High-scoring Aggies return home to battle upstart Rebels
It feels like it might be time for a good old-fashioned UNLV vs. Utah State shootout Tuesday night at the Spectrum.
While the Aggies (3-3 in the Mountain West, 11-6 overall) are coming off a 96-point outing in a road victory at Colorado State last Saturday, the Rebels (2-3, 11-7) put up an even 100 in a 36-point rout of Air Force on the same night in Las Vegas.
Could Tuesday's matchup produce an offensive onslaught like many of the Big West Conference clashes of the 1980s and early ?90s that featured UNLV's epic, 142-140 triple-overtime victory at Utah State in 1985?
For his part, USU head coach Tim Duryea is certainly concerned about slowing down a Rebels' squad that also beat New Mexico 86-74 on Jan. 12, in its first game following the firing of UNLV head coach Dave Rice.
"I am unbelievably impressed by their talent, size, skill and depth," Duryea said of the Rebels, who are now under the guidance of interim head coach Todd Simon. "The last two games they have really been impressive defensively and on the boards and have just annihilated the last two opponents they have played.
"They are playing together and very impressed overall, and their size and talent is just off the charts."
Much of the same could be said for the Aggies, who, just like the Rebels, have won their last two games after dropping their previous three contests.
Saturday's 96-92 win over Colorado State featured a 35-point, 13-rebound performance by senior guard Chris Smith, who went 10 for 17 from the field and 11 of 12 from the free-throw line at Fort Collins. In addition, Smith put up 19 points in USU's 79-60 win over Air Force, good enough to propel him to his second Mountain West Player of the Week award of the season.
"He had two good games, but everyone is going to remember the game at Colorado State," Duryea said of Smith. "I thought Chris was tremendous on both sides of the ball, scoring the ball and rebounding the ball all week long.
"His challenge is consistency. The last time he got this award, he didn't follow it up with a very good week. He's cognizant of that is focussed on putting that week in the past. It was a sampling of what his ability can offer, but he needs to move forward and stay present."
Smith "tweaked" an ankle during the win at Colorado State, but Duryea said on Monday that it is "feeling better and it will not be a problem come tomorrow night."
That's likely not the case with another Aggie, however. Duryea fears that senior forward Grayson Moore, who broke his foot last year while redshirting, re-broke the same bone during the first half of the win over the Rams. Moore didn't play in the second half and was on crutches during the team's trip home from Colorado.
"He's being X-rayed this morning, and based on what they saw, they could do an MRI if they need to," Duryea said. "(USU trainer) Sam (Gay) had no doubt at the airport on Saturday night that it was a broken foot, but we have not confirmed that."
Recently inserted into the starting lineup, Moore had been giving the Aggies good energy and rebounding after coming off the bench in USU's first 14 games. The older brother of junior forward Jalen Moore, Grayson is averaging 3.2 points, 3.7 rebounds and 14.8 minutes per game this season.
"It has a huge impact," Duryea said of Moore's injury. "We've been trying to figure out our options."
Duryea said that Utah State's lack of depth at the wing position could possibly lead to the addition of John Middleton to the rotation. The Aggies were hoping to redshirt the 6-foot-4, 215-pound freshman who averaged 17.8 points and 7.4 assists during his senior season at Holy Spirits High School in Atlantic City, N.J.
The Aggies will certainly need all the help they can get against the Rebels Tuesday night. Utah State is 4-30 all-time against UNLV, although the Aggies did pull off an 83-65 victory last season at the Spectrum after letting a win get away from them in Las Vegas, eventually losing 79-77 in overtime.
Sophomore guard Patrick McCaw leads the Rebels in scoring, averaging 13.0 points per game while shooting 45.1 percent from the field. McCaw has also totaled 50 steals and 72 assists already in 2015-16 while highly touted freshman forward Stephen Zimmerman Jr. has racked up 30 blocks while averaging 10.1 points and 8.8 rebounds per game.
It feels like it might be time for a good old-fashioned UNLV vs. Utah State shootout Tuesday night at the Spectrum.
While the Aggies (3-3 in the Mountain West, 11-6 overall) are coming off a 96-point outing in a road victory at Colorado State last Saturday, the Rebels (2-3, 11-7) put up an even 100 in a 36-point rout of Air Force on the same night in Las Vegas.
Could Tuesday's matchup produce an offensive onslaught like many of the Big West Conference clashes of the 1980s and early ?90s that featured UNLV's epic, 142-140 triple-overtime victory at Utah State in 1985?
For his part, USU head coach Tim Duryea is certainly concerned about slowing down a Rebels' squad that also beat New Mexico 86-74 on Jan. 12, in its first game following the firing of UNLV head coach Dave Rice.
"I am unbelievably impressed by their talent, size, skill and depth," Duryea said of the Rebels, who are now under the guidance of interim head coach Todd Simon. "The last two games they have really been impressive defensively and on the boards and have just annihilated the last two opponents they have played.
"They are playing together and very impressed overall, and their size and talent is just off the charts."
Much of the same could be said for the Aggies, who, just like the Rebels, have won their last two games after dropping their previous three contests.
Saturday's 96-92 win over Colorado State featured a 35-point, 13-rebound performance by senior guard Chris Smith, who went 10 for 17 from the field and 11 of 12 from the free-throw line at Fort Collins. In addition, Smith put up 19 points in USU's 79-60 win over Air Force, good enough to propel him to his second Mountain West Player of the Week award of the season.
"He had two good games, but everyone is going to remember the game at Colorado State," Duryea said of Smith. "I thought Chris was tremendous on both sides of the ball, scoring the ball and rebounding the ball all week long.
"His challenge is consistency. The last time he got this award, he didn't follow it up with a very good week. He's cognizant of that is focussed on putting that week in the past. It was a sampling of what his ability can offer, but he needs to move forward and stay present."
Smith "tweaked" an ankle during the win at Colorado State, but Duryea said on Monday that it is "feeling better and it will not be a problem come tomorrow night."
That's likely not the case with another Aggie, however. Duryea fears that senior forward Grayson Moore, who broke his foot last year while redshirting, re-broke the same bone during the first half of the win over the Rams. Moore didn't play in the second half and was on crutches during the team's trip home from Colorado.
"He's being X-rayed this morning, and based on what they saw, they could do an MRI if they need to," Duryea said. "(USU trainer) Sam (Gay) had no doubt at the airport on Saturday night that it was a broken foot, but we have not confirmed that."
Recently inserted into the starting lineup, Moore had been giving the Aggies good energy and rebounding after coming off the bench in USU's first 14 games. The older brother of junior forward Jalen Moore, Grayson is averaging 3.2 points, 3.7 rebounds and 14.8 minutes per game this season.
"It has a huge impact," Duryea said of Moore's injury. "We've been trying to figure out our options."
Duryea said that Utah State's lack of depth at the wing position could possibly lead to the addition of John Middleton to the rotation. The Aggies were hoping to redshirt the 6-foot-4, 215-pound freshman who averaged 17.8 points and 7.4 assists during his senior season at Holy Spirits High School in Atlantic City, N.J.
The Aggies will certainly need all the help they can get against the Rebels Tuesday night. Utah State is 4-30 all-time against UNLV, although the Aggies did pull off an 83-65 victory last season at the Spectrum after letting a win get away from them in Las Vegas, eventually losing 79-77 in overtime.
Sophomore guard Patrick McCaw leads the Rebels in scoring, averaging 13.0 points per game while shooting 45.1 percent from the field. McCaw has also totaled 50 steals and 72 assists already in 2015-16 while highly touted freshman forward Stephen Zimmerman Jr. has racked up 30 blocks while averaging 10.1 points and 8.8 rebounds per game.
